SELLING A HOME
Selling a home is a daunting process. So many tiny factors can influence a home buyer’s decision and it’s nerve wracking trying to figure out what people are looking for. Finding a great realtor can help make the process less painful. Knowing that there is somebody out there who is on your side and wants your home sold as much as you do can be a great comfort.
FINDING A REALTOR
Before looking through the paper or your local business listings, survey your family and friends who have sold a house. They’ll have incredibly valuable information for you and, because they know you, will know if the realtor they chose would be a good fit for you.
If your friends can’t recommend anybody to you, look through your local business listings. Read your local 
newspaper and listen to local radio. The company who does the most advertising is usually the company who has the biggest budget. The biggest budget means the most success. Read any literature provided by the realtors you visit. See how they describe themselves. Also, check their record—see which kinds of houses they’ve sold the most, contact previous clients to see what their experience was. It’s easy to put positive remarks in a brochure. It’s another to get a personal review from a former client.
Do a thorough interview with potential realtors. Ask what their record is, how long it usually takes them to sell a house, and what kind of commission they’re expecting. Ask whatever you can think of. There is no such thing as too many questions when it comes to selling your home.
It’s also important to consider your potential realtor’s personality. Qualified realtors have very similar resumes, so whether or not you and your realtor can get along is a major factor in the selling of your house. Finding a realtor you can work with is imperative. If you and your realtor clash in any way, your house could stay on the market for much longer than will make either of you happy.
SELLING YOUR HOME
First and foremost, you need to stop thinking of the house you’re selling as your “home.” Let go of the emotional attachment you have to your house. House viewers are very unforgiving in their critique and it is important to remember that they aren’t criticizing you, just the product that is put in front of them. It isn’t any different from critiquing an appliance or a piece of clothing. House viewers are objective. Home owners aren’t.
Take down anything personal. Take down the family photos, the heirlooms, the personal decorating touches. Just because you love them doesn’t mean a potential buyer will. Potential buyers usually take away the “look” of a home and it is hard to put a mental personal touch on a home that is already cluttered with someone else’s personal touches.
Get rid of all of the clutter and clean your house from top to bottom. Make sure all of the flat surfaces (counter tops, tables, bookshelves) are clean and empty. Think “minimalist.” It’s harder to sell a house that is crowded with clutter. To that end, it isn’t a good idea to just shove everything in a closet or cupboard and think “out of sight, out of mind.” Potential buyers are curious and will snoop in every nook and cranny of your house to see if it’s right for them. They will open the cupboards and the closets—including the closet you might have put everything into. A full cupboard or closet is not a good way to demonstrate its storage capacity.
Make sure the exterior of your home is as beautiful as the interior. Take care of your yard and garden. Make sure the leaves are raked, the gutters are cleaned and everything looks perfect. The first impression your house will make is with its exterior.
Think of what you like to see when you go to look at a new home. Take those desires and put them into the house you are trying to sell. If you wouldn’t buy your house after taking a walk through it, would you expect anyone else to buy it?
The faster you sell your house, the happier you will be, and the right realtor can help that process happen. Of course, the realtor can’t take care of everything so there are a number of steps you can take to help the process along. The reward of selling you house makes the process worth it.